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Groundwater Contamination Sources, Pathways, Health Risks, Monitoring and Management
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This review maps the full landscape of groundwater contamination — from geogenic arsenic and fluoride to agricultural runoff, PFAS, pharmaceuticals, and microplastics — and argues that effective protection requires prevention-first governance layered with risk-based monitoring, source control, and targeted treatment tailored to each aquifer's hydrogeology.
Groundwater is a vital source of drinking water, irrigation, and industrial supply, but its quality is increasingly threatened by both natural and human-induced contamination. Because aquifers are hidden and often slow to flush, pollutants can remain undetected and persist for long periods. This review examines the major sources, transport mechanisms, impacts, monitoring approaches, remediation options, and governance challenges associated with groundwater contamination. It covers geogenic contaminants such as arsenic, fluoride, salinity, and uranium; anthropogenic pollutants from agriculture, sanitation, mining, and industry; and emerging contaminants including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pharmaceuticals, and microplastics. The review shows that contamination is strongly shaped by hydrogeology, recharge, redox conditions, and land use, making it a complex multi-contaminant problem. Effective management requires prevention-first governance, risk-based monitoring, source control, targeted treatment, and long-term aquifer protection.
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This review examines groundwater contamination from heavy metals, pesticides, microplastics, and emerging pollutants, assessing health risks and highlighting the need for integrated management strategies to protect this critical freshwater resource.
From geochemical pathways to microplastic vectors: a systematic review of groundwater degradation and adaptive remediation
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Researchers reviewed geochemical and anthropogenic threats to groundwater — including arsenic mobilization, nitrate contamination, saltwater intrusion, and microplastics acting as pollutant vectors — and proposed an integrated decision-making framework linking aquifer type, contamination pathway, and remediation strategy to close the gap between lab performance and field application.
Groundwater Pollution: Sources and Consequences
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This review paper summarizes existing research on groundwater pollution, explaining that contamination comes from both natural and human sources, including heavy metals, microplastics and other pollutants. It notes that once polluted, groundwater can remain contaminated for decades or centuries, with consequences for human health, economic growth and ecosystems.
Understanding Microplastic Pollution in Groundwater: Pathways, Health Implications and Solutions
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This review examines how microplastics infiltrate groundwater systems through pathways including landfills, agricultural runoff, water treatment facilities, and aging plastic pipes. Researchers found that once in groundwater, microplastics can persist for long periods and degrade water quality while interacting with other subsurface contaminants. The study highlights that groundwater microplastic contamination is an underappreciated threat to one of humanity's most important freshwater sources.
Groundwater in the age of plastic
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This review examines microplastic contamination of groundwater globally, synthesizing studies on occurrence, transport pathways through soil and aquifer matrices, and the emerging implications for drinking water safety and groundwater ecosystem health.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.